‘Please don’t,’ Cameron said swiftly. His impulse, no matter how insane or ill-conceived, was to protect and soothe this man. There was a connection here. Maybe it was simply that he wasn’t afraid of killing Trace, but he felt that wasn’t the answer. That was a very small sliver of a very big whole. He was drawn to Trace and he wanted to help.
‘Look, you’re a nice guy, but I’m a really fucking bad idea. Especially for nice guys.’
‘Please. Stay.’ Cameron did the only thing he could think of. He followed his heart. He dropped to his knees and reached for the wolf.
Chapter Nine
‘Get up,’ Trace growled.
Not the response that Cam had been hoping for. He shuffled forward on his knees but Trace made no move to get closer. He didn’t withdraw but he didn’t exactly make it easy.
‘Get up!’ he roared at Cam.
‘No!’ Cameron yelled. When Trace blinked at him, startled, he said, ‘See, I can yell too. And it doesn’t change the fact that this is what I want to do. I really want to do it. And I want you to want me.’
Trace almost smiled but Cameron watched him push the instinct down. ‘You think I don’t want a blowjob from a pretty electric boy? Do you think I’m insane?’
‘A little.’
He did laugh then, and Cameron felt a burst of joy in his chest. ‘Touché. The point is, I don’t want your fucking pity.’
‘I didn’t pity you out in the woods. I wanted you then. I don’t pity you now. I feel bad. I’m sorry I poked. But I do not, under any circumstance, consider my attraction to you pity.’
‘You’re very wordy.’ Trace sighed.
‘There is a way you could shut me up.’
‘Do tell.’ Those intense purple eyes travelled over him, curious.
‘I couldn’t talk if my mouth was full.’
Animal shine flared in Trace’s eyes and, this time, when he growled, the hair on Cameron’s arms stood up and tingled. His cock was so hard it was damn near painful. Would Trace let him? He still wasn’t sure.
Until he unzipped his work pants.
‘Aren’t you afraid of me?’ Trace asked, taking one big step forward. Not close enough for Cam to actually get to him, but close enough that he could feel the heat baking off the shifter.
‘A little,’ Cameron said, scooting closer on his knees.
‘Good,’ Trace said, closing the gap. He threaded his thick fingers in Cameron’s hair and tilted his head back so the weather worker was forced to look at him. ‘Because I’m fucking terrified of you.’
‘What? Why?’
Trace shook his head. ‘Let’s see about filling that mouth.’
The first taste of his skin was bliss to Cameron. He was salty and wild and the taste made Cam think of the beach on an overcast day. The salt and wind and drizzle feel of a grey day graced his lips. He sucked slowly, wanting to give as much pleasure as he could. Some goodness to cancel out the pain his off-the-cuff questions had caused.
‘Jesus. It’s been a long, long time, Cameron. Don’t expect a porn star performance from me.’
It had been just as long for him but he didn’t say that as he dragged the tip of his tongue up the back of Trace’s cock. His skin was soft; his pubic hair was even softer than the norm. It was … silken. Almost like fur. And Cameron couldn’t help but run his fingertips over it as he slid his mouth up and down the wolf’s thick shaft.
Excitement lit in his belly when Trace grabbed his hair a tad harder and actually thrust into his mouth. Giving this man something to make him feel good was beyond words for Cam. He wanted Trace to forget his pain for even just a few minutes. To stop blaming and hating himself and just let go. Cam knew what pain was like – that kind of pain that said you weren’t good enough or even just plain wrong. It was all-consuming and it hurt beyond any physical blow.
His fingers slid along the jut of Trace’s hipbones and then Cam slid his hands to cup Trace’s ass. Every time he felt the muscles grow taut with the wolf’s thrusting, excitement and pleasure curled in Cam’s gut. He wanted so badly to come, but this was all about Trace and that was how he wanted it.
They weren’t ready to fuck – maybe they never would be. But there was this – right now – and that was fine by him.
‘Lightning Boy.’ Trace chuckled, and the sound made Cameron smile. The laugh was real. It was good. Trace jerked against him three times, driving hard into his willing throat, and when he came, Cameron gasped with the rush of salty warmth that flooded his mouth. He did his best and then licked what he could from Trace’s shaft. He rested his head on Trace’s belly and just enjoyed feeling the man pet his hair.
‘Stand up, Cameron,’ Trace said and held out his hand.
Cameron took it and stood, and when he was told to take his pants off, he did that too.
‘Turn around,’ the wolf said, and Cameron felt his skin pebble like he was standing nude in a cool wind. Trace’s voice was cold but the heat that baked off him was intense. He was a walking, talking oxymoron. A glorious paradox.
When Cameron turned, the wolf stepped up close behind him. Trace’s heart was beating rapidly; Cameron could feel it banging against his back. More heat seeped into his tight muscles, making him shiver. Were all shifters this hot?
‘I’m not going to fuck you yet. We’re just getting the hang of each other, what with all the drama and sharing.’ Trace pressed his mouth to the back of Cameron’s neck and his teeth grazed the skin, making Cameron whimper before he realised the sound was even in him to make.
‘OK,’ was the only thing Cameron could think to say and he felt stupid when he said it.
Trace laughed deeply – it was a relaxed sound, a joyous sound. It made anything that was about to happen amazing as far as Cam was concerned. Even if it was just some teasing and a kiss.
Trace wrapped his arm – bulky from manual labour – around Cameron’s middle. He was strong and when he tightened the embrace air slipped from Cameron, making him lightheaded. The wolf’s other arm came around and that big fist wrapped around Cameron’s cock. His hard-on was like a lead pipe and he half laughed, half sobbed when their skin made contact.
‘You were very good just now. You have an amazing mouth,’ Trace said. Cameron nodded but kept silent as the bigger man’s hand began to move. He relished, more than the intimate contact of hand on dick, the feel of that big arm looped around his middle, holding him close. He dared feel secure for just a minute. And it had been a very long time.
‘Thank you,’ he said, feeling like an idiot and not caring one iota.
‘We’re going to revisit that again. But not right now. They’re coming for you. A car’s on its way up the drive.’ Those teeth latched onto the slope of Cameron’s shoulder. That tender place where neck met shoulder and about a million nerve endings lived.
Trace increased the pressure and those sharp teeth scraped Cameron’s skin. His over-sensitised, insanely stimulated skin. Trace tightened his grip around Cam’s waist and bit down just a bit harder, grinding his hard-again cock against the crack of Cam’s ass. So, when he finally increased his pressure and pumped Cam’s cock a bit faster and squeezed just a bit harder, Cameron came undone. Going off like a firework on a hot summer night. Considering he’d just come a few hours before, the force was shocking, and so, so good. His legs felt weak with it, his stomach light with it, his brain buzzing with it.
Trace kissed his ear with a hearty smack and gave him a good squeeze.
‘They’re almost here. Find me later, maybe we can eat dinner together. Or watch a movie. Or fucking quilt something. Jesus, listen to me being such a –’
‘Nice guy,’ Cameron said, putting a finger to the wolf’s lips before he could tear himself down and doubt his happiness. It might be fleeting, but he deserved for it to last. ‘I’ll find you. Maybe you can show me around the place and I can pick your brain.’
Traced cocked his head and studied Cam with those mystical purple eyes of his. ‘Okaaaaaay.’
�
��With permission this time,’ Cam added, and zipped up his pants.
Chapter Ten
‘Sorry about that,’ Sheriff Slaughter said. Eliot was in the car with him and she looked a bit flustered. Cameron had to wonder if the good sheriff had finally confessed his feelings or at least snagged a kiss.
‘How did it go with the Moore twins?’ Cameron asked, climbing in the back as Slaughter started the cruiser.
‘As good as it can go when two foxes get drunk and go at each other.’
‘Plus,’ Eliot said, laughing, ‘it’s hard enough to tell them apart when they’re men. When they’re red foxes it’s just fur and tails and yipping as they go at it.’
‘What did you do?’ Cameron asked, his mind fuzzing around the edges for a second as he remembered being crushed to Trace. The wolf’s hands on his cock. His mouth at the back of Cam’s neck.
‘I turned the hose on them.’ Slaughter rumbled with laughter.
‘It works wonders,’ Eliot said, and winked.
‘I bet.’
‘So, you look all rumpled, Cam. Did you take a nap?’ Slaughter asked, turning onto a wide, paved road. A lot of the roads in Divination Falls seemed to be dirt or gravel, so it was a nice change to drive on a smooth surface, Cameron thought.
He caught the smirk on Eliot’s face but knew she’d never say anything to embarrass him. He ran a hand over his face and tried not to smile. He was definitely giddy. Being intimate with someone twice in one day after what felt like eons alone was definitely something to smile about. ‘Something like that.’ He sighed.
‘Good for you.’ Slaughter slowed the car and finally parked in front of a small house painted barn red. ‘This is the second place a bleed-through happened. Molly was in the back yard when it happened.’
They climbed out and Cameron could hear the falls, a distinct background noise that soothed. ‘Same tentacle thing?’
Eliot shivered, and it made him nervous. As far as constitutions went, she seemed to have a rock solid one, so a shiver from her unnerved him. ‘Not so much.’
‘Not so much? Look, I have to ask before you take me in there to meet a very nice person, no doubt – what the hell do you think I can do to help this situation? What the hell is a weather worker going to do against creatures like this? Mostly I get shocked for a living. Not even for a living. I’m dependent on what people view as my worth and what they give me accordingly. Very old school a-chicken-for-curing-your-cough kind of thing.’
Eliot laughed briefly. She looked tired to him. She leant against the car. ‘I can’t say for certain, but I think you were prompted here –’
‘You mean electrocuted?’
‘That too.’ She smiled. ‘You’re here for a reason. My intuition tells me so. I just don’t have the particulars yet. You showing up and these things escalating can’t be coincidence. I don’t believe in coincidence.’
Cameron didn’t believe in it much either. ‘OK. We’ll trust that you’re right.’
Plus, he asked himself, would you really risk leaving now? Now that you’ve just connected with him?
When he looked her in the eyes, he knew she could feel it. This attraction-connection-need thing he had going with the wolf. He wasn’t ashamed of it and the look on Eliot’s face said she didn’t expect him to be.
‘So you trust her?’ Slaughter asked.
‘Yes.’
‘And you trust him?’ he asked Eliot.
She nodded. ‘Yes, sir, sheriff, I do.’
‘Great. Now can we go in and talk to Molly? Otherwise this is going to be one hell of a long day.’
They trudged up the driveway and Cameron found himself concentrating hard, on what he wasn’t sure. Some noise that lingered just under the sound of the falls. ‘What is that?’ he finally asked.
By then they’d reached the back gate to the property. A carved gate made of wood the colour of caramel. Flowers of all shapes and sizes burst from under the fence and tall ones hung over it. Sunflowers lolled on their skinny stalks and when the breeze blew the smell of honeysuckle was so overpowering Cameron felt his mouth water slightly from the memory of sucking the sweet nectar from the blooms.
‘You’ll see,’ Eliot said with a grin. ‘Hello?’ she called. ‘Molly?’
‘Come in! Come in!’ The voice trilled over the back gate. Had this been a cartoon, Cameron knew that big fat black music notes would be swirling through the air, the woman’s voice was that melodious. What was she? he wondered.
‘It’s us, Moll,’ Slaughter said, reaching over the gate to unlatch it. ‘Did you remember we were coming?’
‘Of course I did. And you were bringing that new fellow. The weather man.’
She swept around the corner and Cameron blinked. She was tall, much taller than him, and she wore a grey and white dress that was all plumes and twirls and ribbons of fabric. Her white hair stood up in tufts and her enormous eyes were seawater grey. She blinked at him and smiled. My God, she had a large mouth. ‘You must be him! The weather man!’
‘Weather worker, actually,’ he said, smiling. ‘And you are Molly. The – um.’
‘Molly Carlisle,’ she said and swept one long arm inward, greeting them, ushering them into her backyard sanctuary.
Cameron cocked his head. The unidentifiable noise had gotten louder.
‘Aren’t they rambunctious?’ Molly asked, leading the way.
‘Your – um – children?’ Cam asked, taking a stab in the dark. Eliot was pressing her lips together so tight they appeared to not exist. What the hell?
‘Haha!’ crowed Molly. ‘I guess you could sort of say that. But more my boarders? Tenants? My guests!’
They turned the corner past a small man-made pond, full of koi from what he could see, and there it was. A huge, screened-in aviary. It was as big as the house to his right. Maybe even bigger. Birds of all kinds swirled and dipped and flew. They shrieked and crowed and sang. Tiny little wild canaries all the way up to crows as big as cats. How were they not all fighting? He knew some birds could be territorial.
Eliot must have plucked it out of his head because she said, ‘Molly has rules. If you need a home to recuperate, you have one, but no fighting and no monkey business.’
‘That is right!’ Molly practically sang. ‘No. Monkey. Business! I have tea. Do you all want some tea?’
‘No thanks, Moll. We’re all tea-ed out for the day,’ Slaughter answered for them all. ‘But if you wouldn’t mind telling Cameron about your experience with the … thinned veil, as you put it.’
‘Oh, my, yes.’ She sighed, shaking her head. ‘It was all I could do not to shove my head in the sand if you must know.’ She laughed.
Cameron felt his eyebrows go up and tried to stop his automatic reaction. His eyes darted to Eliot who grinned at him. ‘Ostrich?’ he mouthed when their hostess looked down to pour herself tea.
Eliot winked and returned her attention to Molly.
‘When was this? Cam asked, trying to focus. What a strange place he was living in. And how much he loved it. He wasn’t even keeping it a secret from himself – his real affection for Divination Falls and all the odd characters it housed.
‘Oooooh, several weeks ago at least. It was after the second little tremor we felt.’
‘Four weeks,’ Slaughter said.
‘And you saw what?’ Cam asked, not wanting to lead her.
‘I went to the aviary to check on the babies,’ she said, eyeing up her feathered friends.
Cameron had a brief vision of all the birds in the enclosure shifting into humans at the same time. What was plenty of space would probably go to a packed house immediately.
Molly sipped her tea and shook her head as if she still couldn’t believe it. ‘And there was this thing in there.’
‘Did it have tentacles?’ he asked, dying for her to tell him something. Anything.
‘Well, yes, there were tentacles. But also … wings!’ Her grey eyes bulged and he half expected her to bob her neck at him the way he’d
seen ostriches do. A very small hysterical bubble of laughter popped out of him before he could help himself and he heard Eliot snort.
‘Are you OK, dear?’ Molly asked, frowning.
‘I am. Sorry. I just can’t imagine tentacles and wings,’ he said, trying to cover for his rudeness.
‘I know. It was most unsavoury. Bouncing about in there with all my lovelies too. They were very upset for days. Except for Mathilda.’ She shocked him by letting out a small sob.
‘Mathilda?’
‘It ate her.’
‘Ate her?’
‘Yes, it had a beak and it ate Mathilda.’
‘And she was a –?’
‘A chicken!’ Molly squawked.
Cameron fought the urge to tap his heels together and wish to go home. Not because he didn’t love this place, not because he had a home to go to, but because he thought at any moment he was going to be overcome with a serious case of inappropriate laughter.
‘I’m very sorry for your loss,’ he said.
‘Thank you.’ Molly nodded and then actually beamed at him.
‘But that concerns me more than anything,’ he said to Slaughter and Eliot. The heels of his feet tingled and his lips too. A wind tossed up and thunder rumbled. He was right; his Brother Lightning was telling him so.
‘What?’
‘If this thing ate her bird, then it’s more than just a thinning in the veil where they’re on one side and we’re on the other. It means there are actual cracks. If my understanding of this stuff is in any way on the money, then there’s probably one big one – crack, I mean – and that weakens surrounding areas. Don’t quote me on that. This is some serious B-movie shit we’re dealing with. Pardon my French,’ he said to Molly.
She waved his indiscretion off. ‘I just want you to stop the bastards. Whatever they are,’ she said and poured more tea.
Chapter Eleven
‘It ate a chicken,’ Cameron said. He watched the sky darken just enough. In fact, he often thought he was the only one who noticed the little nuances, so programmed was he to pick up on the slightest shift in the atmosphere. He had to be aware.
Beast in Me (The Divination Falls Trilogy) Page 6
